China

China's 4-year-old kindergartener spends his time training to be a professional rider


On a racetrack in eastern China, a mini-sized motorcycle is roaring past one curve after another at high speed. What makes the sight so unusual is the rider — a four-year-old boy on a bike so tiny the wheels are smaller than his helmet.

While other children his age spend their time playing with toys, kindergartener Xia Boen from Nanjing in Jiangsu province, spends much of his spare time training at a motorsports circuit.

The boy closely follows domestic and international racing competitions and has lofty aspirations of becoming a professional motorcycle rider and competing internationally in the world of Grand Prix motorcycle racing.

Boen first showed an interest in motorcycles at the age of two when he travelled on the back seat of his father’s Harley-Davidson motorcycle around the Chinese countryside, the Yangtze Evening News reported.

Already an adept motorcycle rider, Boen joins adult riders for racing training at a professional track in the city up to four times a week. His father Xia Fei, a diehard motorcycle fan himself who takes part in amateur contests, said the boy can finish a 1.3km lap in 76 seconds.

“Motorcycle racing was my dream when I was young — I feel sad that I was never able to realise that dream,” Xia said.

“Since my son is crazy about this sport, I think I should provide those opportunities for him.”

Xia’s commitment to his son’s ambitions doesn’t come cheap. For example, the father had a special child-sized motorcycle imported from Italy for Boen to ride at a cost of 20,000 yuan (US$3,000).

The boy’s dream of competing professionally will depend on many things like funding, the competitive environment in the future, and not least of all — Boen himself, Xia said.

‘Since he learned to ride he has become gritty and his willpower has been strengthened. But actually going professional in the future will depend on him.”

“If he can’t go professional, it will be fine if motorsport is just a hobby for him.”

Xia rejected criticism from some quarters that motorsports are too dangerous for children and said he takes every precaution to ensure his son’s safety when racing.

“Compared with other sports, motorsport looks riskier, but participants pay more attention to safety issues,” Xia said in refuting criticism. “Scientific training and specialised equipment can help children avoid being hurt.”

He said he paid little attention to the “misunderstanding and worry” expressed by some people online about his son’s involvement in motorsport.

“I basically ignore that. What they say is their own business. Since I have full working knowledge of this sport, I know what the level of risk is. I believe professional training can help reduce the risks as well. So far the most serious injury I’ve seen is a sprain, which is totally acceptable.”

Xia said the rest of his family supports his decision to allow Boen to pursue a career in motorcycle racing.

The boy is also interested in the repair of motorcycles, and watching mechanics at work has given him a solid working knowledge of how motorcycles are put together and operate, said his father.

“He follows important competitions both at home and abroad and he can list world-class racers,” said Xia.

“The person Boen admires the most is the Spanish racer Marc Márquez Alentà, perhaps because he often wins and is handsome.”

This article was first published in South China Morning Post.



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